The Shrine of Nuestra Señora de la Antigua

The Shrine of Nuestra Señora de la Antigua is located on the slopes of Mount Beloki, near Zumárraga. It was the Parish Church of Zumárraga until 1576. It is mentioned in documents that date from the 14th century as a parish church devoted to St Mary, although it was previously devoted to St Isabel. Some parts of its construction date its origin from the 12th or 13th centuries. This Romanesque-Gothic monumental and artistic jewel was extended with a trapezoidal apse in 1480 and it is considered as the 'cathedral of all shrines'. The church has a rectangular layout and is divided into three naves by six thick cylindrical pillars. It also has two end trusses on the front walls of the building, the one corresponding to the presbytery and the gable of the upper end. It has a gabled roof. The choir and side tribunes have a wooden floor on girders in accordance with the traditional layout used in many typical churches in the region, especially in the Basque-French areas. The wooden structure of the ceiling, which is reminiscent of a ship's hull turned upside down, was built by boat joiners and it is one of the most characteristic and interesting parts of the shrine. It also has two works of particular interest: a Gothic statue of "Andra Mari" (the Virgin Mary) and one of the oldest sculptures of The Piety in Gipuzkoa.